Thomas was pictured cooling off his son in the shower by wife Heather (Picture: Heather Whitten)

Facebook has come in for criticism after it removed this picture of a father cradling his sick son in the shower.

Heather Whitten took the picture of husband Thomas comforting their son after he suffered salmonella poisoning in November 2014.

Explaining the picture she wrote: ‘Thomas had spent hours in the shower with him, trying to keep his fever down and letting the vomit and diarrhea rinse off of them both as it came.

‘It was a powerful moment for us as parents. Our intuition was starting to fire off that this was much more serious than just a virus but we’ve had much more experience with over reacting than not so we were trying to hold off.

Man in hospital after being shot in the ankles‘As I sat in the shower with the two of them I was just overwhelmed with the scene in front of me. This man. This husband and partner and father. He was so patient and so loving and so strong with our tiny son in his lap.

‘His whispers of reassurance to Fox, that he would be ok and that Thomas would take care of him were so steady and so honest. ‘

She continued: ‘I stepped out and grabbed my camera and came back to snap a few images of it and, of course shared them. I was taken aback by how many people missed the story or didn’t even look past the nudity to find the story.

‘They were just hung up on them both being nude and being in the shower. I had crossed a line. It was too intimate. It shouldn’t be shared publicly.

‘My family may be different than yours. But, that doesn’t make your way right or my way wrong. You may never take images of your family like I do… you may never share images of your family like I do. But, that doesn’t give you the right to silence my voice. To take away my right to share our experiences in an uncensored way.

‘There is nothing sexual or exploitative about this image. There aren’t even any “private parts” showing.

‘I wish I could express this all in a better way. I wish I were better spoken and not as rambling. But, this is important to me. And, I hope that one day there will be a platform that not only allows this kind of freedom for families and artists like my own… but, welcomes them without fear.’

Since posting the picture she’s had a lot of support.

Are Einar Omholt wrote: ‘As a father to two young boys this story made made me shed a tear. All loving and caring fathers would have done the same no matter what. Be proud of your husband for giving your child unconditional love and be proud of yourself for sharing this very beautiful moment. Both of you are blessed to have him.’

Nancy Lambert said: ‘People are really quick to judge. It’s not ok, in my opinion to post nude pictures just to post it. When you read the story behind this one, it makes it a perfect moment of pure love, so that is the reason to share it. I am glad that you persevere in sharing this story. He is a great dad to do that for his son. I hope he is ok now.’